Ben Heck mentioned the other day that the SegaCD is still the best-selling console add-on of all time if you don't count the Kinect.

That statement kind of paints a grim picture of console add-ons altogether, doesn't it? Why do game companies keep releasing add-ons if they never sell well? Do game companies even expect a console add-on to sell well? What's the break-even point when the sell enough add-ons to justify the cost of research and development plus manufacturing?

samsonlonghair wrote:Ben Heck mentioned the other day that the SegaCD is still the best-selling console add-on of all time if you don't count the Kinect.

That statement kind of paints a grim picture of console add-ons altogether, doesn't it? Why do game companies keep releasing add-ons if they never sell well? Do game companies even expect a console add-on to sell well? What's the break-even point when the sell enough add-ons to justify the cost of research and development plus manufacturing?

The Kinect is probably a great example of why they DO sell them. Per the internets it looks like it sold 29 million units! Shocking considering no one will able to convince me it was anything but a prototype that they boxed and sold.

I will never be able to put my finger on why, but there seems to be a period after exciting new tech is released where people buy the shit based purely on excitement and never stop to research whether the thing actually works well. The video game industry loves this because a lot of gamers have absolutely zero will power and quite frankly will buy almost anything.

Anyways, the Sega CD was exciting at the time and seemed like a logical progression. It was as innovative as the Kinect and maybe more so at a time where the leaps in tech were much bigger. As far as console add-ons it's probably one of the better conceived ones honestly.

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I am surprised that so many fans of cheese and schlock aren't fans of rhe sega cd. If you even gleam an inkling of joy from Mystery Science Theater 3000, then the Sega Cd is for you! Embrace the FMV love. These genres of games are bad, but not unplayable and the visual experience you receive as your reward is paramount! There is nothing like an FMV game and there never will be.

BogusMeatFactory wrote:I am surprised that so many fans of cheese and schlock aren't fans of rhe sega cd. If you even gleam an inkling of joy from Mystery Science Theater 3000, then the Sega Cd is for you! Embrace the FMV love. These genres of games are bad, but not unplayable and the visual experience you receive as your reward is paramount! There is nothing like an FMV game and there never will be.

Amen to that, it's a very unique experience, very closely tied to mid-90s gaming. I love Genesis, but now that I'm a little older, I'm diving into Sega CD and I love it. The FMV games (I've played Wirehead, Sewer Shark, and Night Trap) are all wonderful fun for lovers of the B-movie vibe. I also really love adventure games, so Snatcher and Space Adventure Cobra (love the anime too!) are standouts, even if they don't really have puzzles and are more akin to visual novels. Actually, the least exciting part of the SCD library for me are the ports and more traditional games. A few more animations and the soundtracks just aren't as neat to me as what boundaries were being pushed elsewhere, as beautiful as the cutscenes in Popful Mail are.

I went from the Genesis to a PS1 late in the game (1997 or so), and the jump was incredible. I still remember the feeling of unlimited possibility for games at that point, and that really made my gaming experience on both systems special. Playing the SCD now, I am glad I never had one when I was young, because that gap certainly wouldn't have been as awe inspiring.

I went from the Sega Genesis to the Sega Saturn in '97, and I'm extremely disappointed in both of you.

The transition from the fourth to fifth generation of consoles never really made an impression on me. I didn't really care about 3D gaming at all. Although, when I saw the Dreamcast in action, that was when I thought my head might explode.

I didn't really understand the point of the Sega CD, when it was relevant, but I remember lusting after Sonic CD, and the Power Rangers game. Now I see it as an extraordinary amendment to the Genesis' already sterling library.

pierrot wrote:I went from the Sega Genesis to the Sega Saturn in '97, and I'm extremely disappointed in both of you.

I dunno, I'm not sure I'd have liked it back in the day. I was pretty young and naive when the Saturn came out, so I didn't know about reading reviews before buying games or importing games from Japan. With the N64 it was pretty easy to just go to the store and buy what looked cool.